In this issue: Narrowing the Range of Temperatures with the E-Thermostat; Mercedes-Benz CDI Diesels: No More Knocking, Smoking, or Stinking; Meet the CLA, Model Series 117; FWD and MacPherson Struts Change the Collision Repair Game
Many advanced steering, stability control, and propulsion technologies in the front-drive CLA depend upon precise suspension geometry for proper vehicle operation. Here are some front wheel drive suspension basics for collision repairers who will be working on this history-making model.
Big news from Mercedes-Benz! Not only front wheel drive and MacPherson struts, but also a host of other departures that prove the superiority of the company’s forward-thinking engineering.
Unstable fossil-fuel markets, customer environmental awareness, and government regulations have all contributed to automobile manufacturers searching for the silver bullet for mpg. Mercedes-Benz has looked to its long diesel engine history, and added a huge dose of new technology.
In order to maintain emissions compliance, Mercedes-Benz engineers have to control the temperature range the engine will operate in and develop engine management parameters within this range. This may sound simple enough, but how do you accomplish this when the car might sit for an hour of traffic on a hot summer day, or cruise at highway speeds in the dead of winter?
Where safety is concerned, what’s more important than brakes? And now, of course, lots of sophisticated electronics are involved in stopping a vehicle. We need to keep up to speed on the systems that help cars slow down, yet not lose sight of the basics.
Working with this light metal in collision repair isn’t really more difficult than working with steel. It’s just different. Learn how to deal with those differences in a professional manner and you’l be ready when an aluminum-intensive Mercedes-Benz rolls into your shop.
